Saturday, October 1, 2022

And Just Like That...It's Fall

It's a little cooler than it's supposed to be this time of year and that's really got me feeling fall! No complaints--we have gorgeous blue skies and perfect conditions for running. I do admit to feeling a little guilt at enjoying these conditions in light of the horrible tragedy following Hurricane Ian in the south. 

My favorite part of Florida is the gulf coast. Over the years, we've spent many happy vacations down there. We've stayed in Ft Myers Beach, Naples, and Sanibel, as well as several other locations that weren't as severely affected by the storm. Several of my friends and neighbors have relocated to that part of Florida. We've heard from most of them, but not all. I cannot imagine what it is like to lose your home or worse to a storm like that. I hope and pray that everyone affected is able to recover quickly. 


Weekly Rundown
Sunday: rest
Monday: CrossFit, 800m timed run
Tuesday: Pool Running
Wednesday: trail run 6 miles
Thursday: strength training
Friday: run 6 miles
Saturday: rest

September miles: 90

Running

A beautiful cool, crisp morning, I headed out on Wednesday to my trails with no route in mind except to get about 6 miles in. I mostly ran on the single tracks and it was slow going with all the exposed tree roots, stumps, and fallen trees. My left knee has been bothering me a bit, so I didn't want to push it too hard. I caught my toe a few times but managed to stay upright. Towards the end of my run, I was thinking about taking a detour to get an extra mile in when I caught my toe on a stump and ooof! I went down. I sat there in the dirt, taking a few minutes to recover and assess the damage. I think it was fortunate that I was wearing my Brooks method 3/4 tights, which thanks to their compression kept my knee protected. I started out walking down the trail, but was quickly able to pick my pace back up to a run.


Friday's run was shockingly good! I fully expected to feel completely destroyed after my strength workout the day before. I was mildly sore and the cool morning temperatures were just the icing on the cake. I chugged down the trail at a nice 9:30 pace, only stopping to admire the sunrise and snap a few other photos. I headed into the office feeling good and carried that feeling through what was a brutally busy day. 

CrossFit/Strength Training

Oooooh! Monday's WOD had an 800m timed run for the strength portion! I missed the benchmark run in the spring, but no worries, I was all in for this one. We did an extensive warmup before we lined up to do our run. We took off into the wind and I held back, hoping the tailwind would give me the push I needed on the way back. At 400m, I was pretty gassed but once I turned around, I dug in and took full advantage of that tailwind and oh-so-mild decline on the way back. I crossed the line at 3:44, good enough to come in 3rd in the class. This tied my effort from 3 years ago and yeah, I was happy!


Oh, but wait! There's more! We still had to do the MetCon and it was a beast. A 12 minute AMRAP, we started each round with a 100m run and followed that with 2 sets of 'Macho Man', 3 power cleans, 3 front squats, and 3 push jerks. I did 55# and somehow managed to get through this 5 times. I was surprised I didn't vomit! As you might expect, I was very pleased with my time in the gym on Monday.

Thursday's strength workout with SJ was another redliner as we revisited a benchmark workout from June. This was five timed rounds of 50m weighted sled pushes (70#), 10 hollow rocks, 10 atomic situps, and 10 push presses (70#). I did really well with the sled pushes--clearly, my trail runs on the hills of the IAT have strengthened my hammies. But the push presses were a struggle. I had to break them up into smaller sets. SJ realized after 2 rounds that she made them heavier than she intended. I'm not so sure if I believe that, but she offered to drop the weight. I decided to stay the course and persevere. I don't regret that decision and it made her happy, but ooh, I felt very sick after this workout. I do want to revisit it in a few months because coming up, we will be doing more upper body strength. 

Coming up!

Today I'm kicking off the Mammoth Hike Challenge by heading up to Janesville, Wisconsin to explore the downtown and some new-to-me segments of the IAT. Be sure to check out my IG for photos. I'll be posting more updates here next week! Spoiler alert: I might even have a race on the Gibraltar Segment of IAT next Saturday. Not only do I get miles, but I also get bonus miles because it's an IAT-sanctioned event. I call that a big win!


How was your week? Do you know anyone affected by Ian? Any signs of fall where you are? Is anyone running any fall races?

I'm linking up with Deborah and Kim for the Weekly Rundown. 

26 comments :

  1. You know, I do have a cousin that lives in FL. I don't even know where (my cousins are much older than me). My mom hasn't brought anything up, so I'm assuming that she's ok.

    Glad the knee was protected! Envious of your blue skies, we were very cloudy this week. :(

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  2. Yeah a friend of mine has waterfront property in Fort Meyers and her house is gone. It's so devastating. We too spent many a vacay in Sanibel, Marco Island, Naples, etc. Sad. Nice workouts this week and I hope your knee is ok!

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  3. All of our Florida friends are alright, thank goodness. A friend's daughter is in grad school somewhere in the area, and had to evacuate, but was unscathed. And, our place (which is inland) had a lot of rain, but was out of the path of everything. But, yeah. Ian did a number of Florida. The temps took a wicked nosedive here last week, but have rebounded nicely...I'm ever grateful for all the sunshine!

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    1. I didn't realize you had a place in Florida! I thought you just went for a month.

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  4. Changing Of The Colors - Such A Happy Face In That Blue Shorts Photo - The World Needs More Little Wendy's For Sure - Big Hugs My Dear

    Cheers

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    1. Haha, you are just too kind. Thought of you today seeing disc golfers on my run.

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  5. I'm glad you didn't hurt yourself (or tear your tights) when you fell on the trail!

    Our son and d-i-l (and Pablo) evacuated Tampa and headed north to Charlotte, NC for a few days. They returned yesterday and their house survived without any damage. We have a lot of friends who have retired to Naples and we've heard from all and thankfully they're okay.

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    1. So glad to hear this. We're still waiting to hear from our friends! I assume they evacuated, but you never know.

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  6. Did you see the photos of the Sanibel causeway??? They had to evacuate any remaining people from Sanibel island by boat. Yes, we know a bunch of people in that area- most of them evacuated or were well enough inland to be safe. What a disaster.
    I can't wait to hear all about your trail adventures. I'm getting motivated to check out more trails in Florida (although they aren't as scenic as yours.) I don't usually check IG but I will this week because I'm to see anxious to see your photos. Have fun!!!

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    1. I did see those photos of Sanibel and it broke my heart. Captiva too.

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  7. Your strength training is so impressive. Inspirational. Glad the fall wasn't too serious.

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    1. Thank you, Jessie! I was a little upset with the heavy plates on the push presses, but I got it done. She's always pushing me a little harder than I like...

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  8. We still have a few more weeks until it looks like fall around here but it is starting to cool off. This weekend we had all the left over rain from Ian

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  9. That's a great pace on the 800m, Wendy! Well done!! So cool that it matches your run from 3 years ago, too.
    Yay, a IAT race! Nicely planned with the bonus points.
    We used to have an apartment in Naples, FL. We sold it early 2020. It was directly at the beach. We saw videos and photos of the apartment building yesterday. It's still standing, but the damage is incredible. I feel so sorry for our ex-neighbours.

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  10. Wow! You had an awesome week at Crossfit, especially the 800m run. How amazing to match a time from 3 years prior. That just proves you are so consistent with putting in hard work year after year - I love it!

    Seeing the images coming from Florida was really scary and sad :(

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    1. I didn't have the same luck this week with the mile, but I was close!

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  11. It really is as if a switch was flipped when fall hit! It's been raining here the past few days, which I suspect is remnants of Hurricane Ian. Sounds like you have a good time on the IAT !

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  12. I have many friends in FL. One actually came up north. Happily all are safe.

    Fall has hit us. In Maine, it was very chilly.

    Love trail pictures and glad you are enjoying your runs.

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  13. Hello, Fall! Our mornings and evenings are definitely fall, but midday is still super hot. Ian was a monster. I've been in a few hurricanes, but nothing like what we are seeing out of that part of the state. I know they will rebuild stronger than ever, but it's just devastating.

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